Former Los Angeles Laker Magic Johnson is joined by WNBA president Laurel Richie in front of Staples Center on Feb. 5, 2014, to announce that he is part of a group buying the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)

CLEVELAND >> Magic Johnson hopes he can provide the Lakers a few assists, yet in a different way that brought them five NBA championships during the Showtime Era.

“I love them. I’m going to support them. I asked Mitch (Kupchak) the other day if you want me to recruit (free agents) this summer,” Johnson said, referring to the Lakers’ general manager. “People don’t know that was my role with Dr. Buss for a while. I was the first to call Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, all these guys. That was my job, calling them and recruiting them.”

Johnson made those comments to reporters on Wednesday in Los Angeles, where he was introduced as part of the new ownership group along with Mark Walters to purchase the WNBA’s Sparks. Johnson is also part of the Guggenheim Partners, the investment group that bought the Dodgers in 2012. None of the Lakers’ past players, including Johnson, provided an active role in convincing Dwight Howard last summer to stay before he left for Houston.

Johnson sold his 4.5-percent ownership stake with the Lakers in 2010 and remains an unpaid vice president with the team. But a source familiar with Johnson’s latest involvement with the Sparks says he has no intention in making any efforts to own the Lakers. The Lakers have remained adamant that ownership will stay within the Buss family following Dr. Buss’ passing last February.

Johnson’s latest pitch comes on the heels on his recent vow that he won’t criticize the Lakers anymore. He has questioned the Lakers’ decision to hire Mike D’Antoni as head coach last season over Phil Jackson, blamed the team’s defensive miscues on D’Antoni’s fast-paced system, and critiqued Jim Buss’ competence.

“I love the franchise,” Johnson said. “But it hurts me.”

Feeling a pull

It didn’t take long for Jordan Farmar to shake off any rust stemmed from sitting out the past five weeks because of a torn left hamstring.

In the Lakers’ 119-108 victory Wednesday over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena, Farmar posted 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting and eight assists in 33 minutes. But at D’Antoni’s encouragement, Farmar sat for the final 4:56 after feeling cramps in his calf muscles.

“The longer I played, the worse I felt. With my body, it was just to many minutes for my first day back,” Farmar said. “My body started getting tight and I was getting tired. They tell me I’m at the most risk when fatigue sets in so it can happen again.”

Advertisement

Going viral

In his own way of making light of the Lakers’ depleted roster, Chris Kaman laid down on a row of seats after collecting four fouls as the Lakers led 96-73 with 2:21 left in the third quarter. The images of Lakers physical therapist Judy Seto amused at Kaman’s antics went viral.

“I had my shoes untied and I was laying down on the bench because we had a long bench,” Kaman said. “There was 30 feet of extra space that I laid down.”

That state of relaxation stopped with 9:39 left in the fourth quarter after Farmar felt tightness in his cramps. Kaman then picked up two more fouls. Will he remember to keep his shoes tied moving forward?